JP2016512640A - Local search with strong social awareness in the context - Google Patents

Abstract

Methods, systems, and computer program products are provided for determining a meeting location. A group of people to gather is determined. A combined interest set representing a group of people is generated. The location of people in the group is determined to determine multiple locations. A local search result for a group of people generated based on the combined interest set and the determined plurality of locations is received. The local search results include at least one possible meeting place. Local search results can be displayed to at least one of a group of people.

Description

  The present invention relates to a local search with a strong social consciousness in context.

  A search engine is an information retrieval application that is used to locate documents and other information. Search engines help reduce the amount of time needed to find information. One type of well-known search engine is the web search engine, on web pages, image files, video files, and “World Wide Web” (also known as “Web”). Search for documents that contain other objects. “Local search” refers to the use of a search engine that allows users to submit geographically constrained searches against a structured database of local business listings. refer. Local search is a common feature that is embedded or accessible as a third party application by computing devices, such as smartphones and computers. Local search allows individual users to search for commercial facilities (eg, restaurants, coffee shops, etc.), entertainment facilities (museums), and additional types of destinations based on the user's current location.

  A common problem with local search is that there are too many destination options available in a large city setting. There are literally hundreds (sometimes thousands) of local search results for a relatively small geographic area. Reading through these redundant results can be time consuming and problematic in the case of destination searches. Local search has been somewhat improved by taking into account user characteristics. Local searches, however, are still limited to searches performed by individual users, among other deficiencies.

  This summary introduces a selection of representative concepts in a simplified form for the inventive concepts described in greater detail in the detailed description that follows. This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed technical matter. It is not intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed technical matter.

  Methods, systems, and computer program products are provided for determining a gathering location for a group of people. The group of people may be determined manually or automatically, or may be determined by a combination of manual and automatic techniques. Profile information related to people in the group (eg, interests, preferences, and other characteristics) may be determined by polling available information, where the determined information is the group's interests. May be analyzed to determine the intersection of The location of the group's people may be determined, and a coarse center position for the group may be determined based on the determined location. The determined profile information and the coarse center position of the group may be issued in a local search query to automatically determine the meeting location for the group.

  In one embodiment, a method is provided for determining a meeting location. A group of people to gather is determined. A combined interest set representing a group of people is generated. In order to determine multiple locations, the location of people in the group is determined. Local search results for a group of people generated based on the combined interest set and the determined plurality of locations are received. The local search results include at least one possible meeting place. Local search results can be displayed to at least one of the group of people.

  In another embodiment, a system for determining a meeting location is provided. The system includes a group determiner, an interest set generator, a whereabouts determiner, a local search service interface, and an output interface. The group determiner is configured to determine a group of people to gather. The interest set generator is configured to generate a combined interest set representative of a group of people. The whereabouts determiner is configured to determine the whereabouts of people in the group to determine a plurality of places. The local search service interface is configured to receive local search results for a group of people generated based on the combined interest set and the determined plurality of locations. The local search results include at least one possible meeting place. The output interface is configured to allow local search results to be displayed to at least one of the group of people.

  The group determiner may be configured to generate a user interface that allows a group of people to be defined manually and / or may be configured to automatically generate a group of people.

  Furthermore, the interest set generator may include a profile information searcher and a profile intersection determiner. The profile information searcher may be configured to obtain profile information for a group of people. The profile intersection determiner is configured to determine the intersection of profile information obtained to generate the combined interest set.

  The profile information searcher is configured to obtain profile information for at least one of the people in the group from at least one of social networks, search engines, contact information about people, and / or other sources of profile information. Good. The profile information searcher may include a message thread analyzer configured to analyze at least one message thread of the group for at least one of interest information, time information, or meeting location suggestions.

  The interest set generator may include a preference adjuster configured to generate a user interface to allow a coordinator to manually adjust at least one preference for a group of people.

  The system may further include a statistics generator configured to generate statistics for the combined interest set and to be displayed by the output interface for at least one of the group of people.

  Computer readable media are also disclosed herein. It contains computer program instructions that allow the processor to determine the gathering location. Similarly, it allows for additional embodiments described herein.

  Further features and advantages of the present invention, as well as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the present invention, are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described herein. Such embodiments are provided herein for illustrative purposes only. Based on the teachings contained herein, additional embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

The accompanying drawings are included herein and form a part of the specification. The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention and, together with the description, explain the subject matter of the invention and further serve to enable those skilled in the art to make and use the invention.
FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a communication system that automatically determines one set location for one group according to one embodiment. FIG. 2 shows a flow chart that provides a process for automatically determining one meeting place for one group, according to one embodiment. FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of a meeting system that automatically determines one meeting place for one group according to one embodiment. FIG. 4 illustrates a block diagram of a communication system that determines a group of people that a group determiner gathers together, according to one embodiment. FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart that provides a process for determining a conjoined interest set for a group, according to one embodiment. FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of a communication system in which an interest set generator determines one combined interest set for a group, according to one embodiment. FIG. 7 shows a block diagram of a profile information searcher according to one embodiment. FIG. 8 illustrates a block diagram of a communication system that enables a profile intersection determiner to adjust group set preferences according to one embodiment. FIG. 9 illustrates a block diagram of a communication system that allows an output interface to display local search results and associated statistics, according to one embodiment. FIG. 10 shows a block diagram of a user interface that automatically determines one meeting place for one group according to an embodiment. FIG. 11 shows a block diagram of a user interface that allows one meeting place to be automatically determined for one group according to an embodiment. FIG. 12 shows a block diagram of a user interface that automatically determines one meeting place for one group according to an embodiment. FIG. 13 shows a block diagram of a user interface that automatically determines one meeting place for one group according to an embodiment. FIG. 14 shows a block diagram of a user interface that allows one set location to be automatically determined for one group, according to an embodiment. FIG. 15 shows a block diagram of a user interface that allows one set location to be automatically determined for one group, according to an embodiment. FIG. 16A shows a block diagram of a user interface that allows one set location to be automatically determined for one group, according to an embodiment. FIG. 16B shows a block diagram of a user interface that allows one meeting place to be automatically determined for one group, according to an embodiment. FIG. 17 shows a block diagram of one example of a computing device that can be used to implement an embodiment of the present invention.

  The features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the detailed description set forth below when considered in conjunction with the drawings. In the drawings, like reference characters identify corresponding elements throughout. In the drawings, like reference numbers generally indicate identical, functionally similar, and / or structurally similar elements. The drawing in which an element first appears is indicated by the leftmost digit (s) in the corresponding reference number.

I. This specification discloses one or more embodiments that embody features of the present invention. The disclosed embodiments are merely illustrative of the invention. The scope of the invention is not limited by the disclosed embodiments. The invention is defined by the claims appended hereto.

  References to “one embodiment” (“one embedment”, “an embodiment”, “an example embedment”, etc.) in the specification may include certain features, configurations, or characteristics. This means that not all embodiments necessarily include a predetermined feature, configuration, or characteristic. In addition, such phrases do not necessarily require reference to the same embodiment. Further, where a given feature, configuration, or characteristic is described in connection with one embodiment, such feature, configuration, or configuration with respect to other embodiments, whether or not explicitly described. Providing properties is suggested to be within the knowledge of those skilled in the art.

  In the following, a number of exemplary embodiments of the invention will be described. Note that any section / subsection headings provided herein are not intended to be limiting. Examples are described throughout this document and any type of example can be included under any section / subsection. Further, the embodiments disclosed in any section / subsection may be combined in any manner with any other embodiments described in the same section / subsection and / or different sections / subsections.

II. Examples One type of well-known search engine is the web search engine, web pages, image files, video files, and “World Wide Web” (also known as “Web”). Search for documents that contain other objects above. “Local search” refers to the use of a search engine that allows a user to submit a geographically constrained search against a structured database of local business lists. Local search is a common feature that is embedded or accessible as a third party application by computing devices, such as smartphones and computers. Local search allows individual users to search for commercial facilities (eg, restaurants, coffee shops, etc.), entertainment facilities (museums), and additional types of destinations based on the user's current location.

  A common problem with local search is that there are too many destination options available in a large city setting. There are literally hundreds (sometimes thousands) of local search results for a relatively small geographic area. Reading through these redundant results can be time consuming and problematic in the case of destination searches. In recent years, local search has been somewhat improved by taking into account user characteristics and classifying local search results based on user interests.

  However, local searches currently cannot handle searches performed in the context of a group of people. The embodiments described herein overcome these deficiencies of current local search technology. According to an embodiment, the location for a group of people is determined while considering the interests of the people in the group. Further, such an embodiment may allow a meeting location to be determined for a group of people in a fully automatic or semi-automatic manner (e.g., a user manually selects one or more meeting participants, Allowing you to manually adjust the nature of the meeting, etc.).

  For example, in one embodiment, a group of users may be defined by a context. Virtual “family room”, customer “group”, joint message thread, or other accessible listing or grouping By being a part of it. After the group is defined, the location of the people in the group is queried, and a “central area” or “central location” appropriate for the group to gather. The traffic conditions around the people may be analyzed to determine. Based on distance and / or substantially equivalent travel time. Once this “central region” is defined, people's preferences may be queried in any way (eg, using a search engine, etc.). This is so that a recommended location for the gathering is determined, which is a likely destination for the group. For example, a highly rated coffee shop, restaurant, or other location may be recommended. Time is also taken into account.

  In another embodiment, if the user is in a group of young college friends, filtered and / or based on the likelihood that the group will prefer a predetermined destination (eg, a hip bar with karaoke). An ordered local search result may be generated. Alternatively, if the user is in a group of people with toddlers, filtered / ordered local search results may be generated based on destinations that are likely to be accepted by that group (e.g., with playgrounds) Search for nearby coffee shops, etc.). In yet another embodiment, a popular traveler if the group of people are “out of town” customers (eg, the user has an address outside the local area). Local search results may be generated to highlight the attractions or restaurants.

  Such an embodiment may be implemented in various environments. For example, FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a communication system 100 that allows one set location to be automatically determined for a group, according to one embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, system 100 includes first to nth computing devices 102a-102n (computing devices 102a, 102b, and 102n are explicitly shown in FIG. 1), first server 104, storage 106. A second server 108 and a network 110. As further shown in FIG. 1, computing devices 102a, 102b, and 102n include an application 112, a mobile app 124, and a web application 116, respectively. Furthermore, the first server 104 includes a meeting system 118, and the second server 108 includes a local search service 120. These features of the communication system 100 are described below.

  The computing devices 102a-102n may each be any type of stationary or mobile computing device. Desktop computers (eg, personal computers, etc.), mobile computers or computing devices (eg, Microsoft Surface (R) equipment, Palm (R) equipment, RIM Blackberry (R) equipment, Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)), Laptop computers, notebook computers, tablet computers (such as Apple's iPad, netbooks, etc.), mobile phones (eg, cell phones, Microsoft's Windows (R) phones, Apple's iPhone, Google) Smartphones such as Android phones, etc.), or other types of mobile devices. The first server 104 and the second server 108 may each be implemented in one or more computer systems. The computer system includes one or more servers. A server may be any type of computing device described herein, or otherwise known to be capable of enabling one corresponding to the functionality described herein.

  The computing devices 102a-102n, the first server 104, and the second server 108 are communicatively connected by a network 110. The network 110 may include one or more communication links and / or communication networks. PAN (personal area network), LAN (local area network), WAN (wide area network), or a combination of networks such as the Internet. The computing devices 102a, 102b, and 102n and the first server 104 may be communicatively connected to the network 110 using various links. The link includes a wired and / or wireless link. IEEE 802.11 wireless LAN (WLAN) wireless link, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (Wi-MAX) link, cellular network link, wireless personal area network (PAN) link (eg, Bluetooth (registered trademark) link), Ethernet (registered trademark) ) Link, USB link, etc.

  Each of the computing devices 102a-102n is associated with a user that interacts with the respective computing device, as described herein. The number “n” of computing devices 102a-102n is shown in FIG. 1 for illustrative purposes. Any number relating to two or more computing systems may exist in system 100. It includes dozens, hundreds, thousands, and higher quantities of computing devices. Each computing device may run one or more corresponding applications.

  Note that in one embodiment, a meeting system 118 may be included in the server, as shown in FIG. In another example, the meeting system 118 may be included in one of the group's user computing devices 102a-102n.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the storage 106 is connected to a service 104. The storage 106 may be connected directly to the first server 104 or may be connected to the first server 104 through the network 110. The storage 106 can store the profile information 122. The storage 106 may have a database format or other format and may include one or more of any type of storage mechanism for storing profile information 122. The storage mechanism may be a memory device such as a magnetic disk (eg, in a hard disk drive), an optical disk (eg, in an optical disk drive), a magnetic tape (eg, in a tape drive), a RAM device, a ROM device, etc., and / or , Including any other suitable type of storage media.

  The computing devices 102a-102n are computing devices used by people involved for any quantity and type of function. Such people may be interested in meeting together in one place. For example, a user of one of the computing devices 102a-102n may interact with the computing device to request a meeting location to be determined according to an embodiment. A user can interact with a user interface displayed by the application on the computing device (eg, a web page displayed by a web browser, or a user interface provided by another form of application). Such as an application 112 on computing device 102a, a mobile app 124 on computing device 102b, or a user interface displayed by web application 116 on computing device 102n. As shown in FIG. 1, a meeting request 114 may be sent from one of the computing devices 102a-102n because the user is interacting with a corresponding user interface. For example, the computing device 102a may send a meeting request 114 in a communication signal over the network 110 as received by the meeting system 118 at the first server 104. The communication signal may be transmitted in any form.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the meeting system 118 at the server 104 may receive a meeting request 114. In response to receiving meeting request 114, meeting system 118 determines a meeting location for the group of people. The meeting system 118 may manually or automatically determine the people to include in the group. For example, the meeting system 118 allows a person at one of the computing devices 102a-102n to manually select people to be included in the group and the people opt-in the group. ) Or opt-out. Alternatively, the meeting system 118 may automatically include people in the group. People were joined together in a meeting (eg, as indicated by a calendar appointment), and joined together in a messaging thread (eg, email chain, text message thread, chat room, Social network discussion / comment thread, etc.), associated together in a social network circle (eg, friend group, family group, online group, etc.), to the same geographic location when the meeting request 114 is issued Or otherwise associated with.

  Meeting system 118 can access profile information 122 from multiple profiles contained in storage 106 for people in the determined group. Meeting system 118 analyzes profile information 122 to determine demographic information, interests, overlap in preferences, and / or other profile information about people to determine a combined interest set for people. Can be analyzed. In addition, the meeting system 118 can determine whereabouts for each person in the group and generate a general geographic center location for the group (eg, distance and / or travel time). The determined location can be analyzed.

  The meeting system 118 may provide the combined interest set for the group and the determined center location in a local search request 126 sent from the first server 104 to the local search service 120 at the second server 108. The local search service 120 is a search engine that allows a user to submit a geographically constrained search against a structured database of local business lists. As such, the local search request 126 may include information from the combined interest set determined to be used by the local search service 120. It seems to describe what “(what)” is being searched. The determined combined interest set information may be in the form of keywords and / or structured search queries, such as restaurant type, food type, food preferences, drink preferences, hobbies, other predetermined interests, etc. Such as interest / preference. The same applies to demographic information such as the average age of the group, whether or not the group has children. Further, the local search request 126 may include a central location to be used by the local search service 120 as “where” information for selecting a meeting location. The center position may be in any form related to the place, and defines the following information. Street address, city name, zip code, geographical coordinates (eg latitude and longitude), landmark name (eg hotel name, monument name, park name, etc.), workplace name (eg hotel name, business name) , Etc.). Alternatively, it may be another format.

  The local search service 120 may process the determined combined interest set and center location to select one or more possible gathering locations for the group. The local search service 120 may provide one or more possible gathering locations in a local search response 128 that is transmitted from the second server 108 to the meeting system 118 at the first server 104. Note that in another embodiment, the local search service 120 and the meeting system 118 may be located on a common server.

  In response to the meeting request 114, the meeting system 118 may send one or more possible gathering locations from the first server 104 to one or more computing devices 102a-102n of the local search results 130. May be provided in. For example, in one embodiment, the local search results 130 may be sent to one computing device (eg, computing device 102a) associated with the user who submitted the meeting request 114. One (eg, the highest) possible gathering location may be provided, or a list of possible gathering locations may be provided. In this way, a user (eg, a group coordinator) evaluates one or more possible meeting places and one of the possible meeting places to become a selected meeting place for the group. Can be selected. The user may distribute the selected gathering location to other users of the group in any way. The method may include a message sent over the network 110 or otherwise.

  In another example, local search results 130 may be sent to all computing devices associated with people in the group (eg, two or more of computing devices 102a-102n). In this way, the people in the group evaluate one or more possible meeting places and vote one of the possible meeting places or otherwise determine one of the possible meeting places. You can choose. The selected gathering location may be indicated to all users of the group by any method. The method may include a message sent over the network 110, a display of voting results for possible gathering locations, or another method.

  The elements of the communication system 100 shown in FIG. 1 may be configured in various ways in the embodiment. Examples of elements of the communication system 100 are described in the following subsections.

A. Meeting System Embodiment As described above, in an embodiment, the meeting system allows a meeting place to be selected for a group of people. Such a meeting system may be configured in various ways and may perform functions in various ways. For example, FIG. 2 shows a flowchart 200 that provides a process that allows one meeting location to be automatically determined for a group, according to one embodiment. The meeting system 118 of FIG. 1 may operate according to the flowchart 200 in one embodiment. For illustrative purposes, the flowchart 200 of FIG. 2 is described with respect to FIG. FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of a meeting system 300 that automatically determines one meeting place for one group, according to one embodiment. Meeting system 300 is one example of meeting system 118 of FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the meeting system 300 includes a group determiner 302, a whereabouts determiner 304, an interest set generator 306, a local search service interface 308, and an output interface 310. Flowchart 200 and meeting system 300 are described below. Note that the steps of flowchart 200 may be performed in an order other than the order shown in FIG. Furthermore, further structural and operational embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on the following description.

  The flowchart 200 begins at step 202. In step 202, a group of people to gather is determined. As shown in FIG. 3, the group determiner 302 of the meeting system 300 can receive the meeting request 114. Group determiner 302 is configured to determine the people to include in the group of people. The determined group of people includes those to be invited to gather in one place, as determined herein. In an embodiment, the group determiner 302 is configured to determine the people to include in the group, either manually or automatically. In addition, group determiner 302 allows people to opt in or out of groups.

  For example, FIG. 4 shows a diagram of a portion of the communication system 100 of FIG. 1, and according to one embodiment, a group determiner 302 (in the server 104) determines a group of people to gather together. As shown in FIG. 4, the group determiner 302 includes a manual input enabler 402 and an automatic group generator 404. Either or both manual input enabler 402 and automatic group generator 404 may be present. The manual input enabler 402 is configured to manually receive participants entered for a group, and the automatic group generator 404 is configured to automatically generate groups of people. Yes. As shown in FIG. 3, the group determiner 302 generates a determined group display 312. It directs the people included in the determined group.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the manual input enabler 402 can generate a user interface definition 406. The definition is transmitted in a communication signal from the first server 104 over the network 110 to the computing device 102a. User interface definition 406 may have any form. At least one of a text document, a code file (eg, JAVA®, JavaScript®, etc.), a web document (eg, HTML, XML (Extensible Markup Language), and / or other code) Web page coded in) or other form. The user interface definition 406 defines a user interface that allows a user to manually define group participants.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the application 112 at the computing device 102 a can generate a user interface 408 based on the user interface definition 406. Application 112 may include a web browser that displays user interface 408 based on the web document version of user interface definition 406. Alternatively, the user interface 408 may be generated in other ways based on the user interface definition 406. User interface 408 may include any number of user interface elements and combinations thereof so that group members can be defined. Examples of such user interface elements include graphical icons, visual displays, menus, radio buttons, check boxes, sliders, and the like. A single user (eg, a group coordinator) at computing device 102a may be allowed to select people to include in the group in various ways by interacting with user interface 408. Entering a name in the text box, selecting people from the contact list, and / or other methods.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the application 112 may generate a group list 410 that includes a list of people included in the group. The group list 410 is transmitted from the computing device 102a over the network 110 to the manual input enabler 402 in the first server 104.

  Alternatively, the automatic group generator 404 may automatically determine the people to include in the group. For example, the automatic group generator 404 may be configured to analyze one or more data structures to automatically determine the people to include in the group based on the context. For example, the automatic group generator 404 generates a group to include people from a pool of qualified persons determined to be within a predetermined geographic region, and from a location indicated by the coordinator for the group. Create a group to include people from the pool of qualified persons determined to be within a radial distance of the Groups can be created to include people from the pool, or groups can be created based on groupings of people formed online.

  For example, a pool of eligible people is listed in a given contact list, has joined together in a meeting (eg, as indicated by a calendar appointment), has joined a message thread together People (eg, email chains, text message threads, chat rooms, social network discussion / comment threads, etc.), people associated together in social network circles (eg, friend groups, family groups, online groups, etc.) ), People who were in the same geographic location when the meeting request 114 was issued, or people who were otherwise associated.

  The automatic group generator 404 can access any of these eligible pools. Contact lists for phone or message tools, contact management applications or databases, calendar tools for booking (eg, Microsoft® Outlook® developed by Microsoft Corporation in Redmond, Washington, etc.), messages By accessing threads (eg, email, text messages, chat rooms, social network discussion threads, etc.), online social networks for social groups, etc. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the automatic group generator 404 may receive group information 412. Group information may include contact lists, calendar reservations, message threads, social group displays, and the like. Automatic group generator 404 generates group information 412 (eg, people in a contact list, in a reservation, to generate a group of people by including people found in the database structure included in group information 412. Listed people, people included in message threads, people included in social groups, etc.).

  In addition, the automatic group generator 404 may receive user location information 414. This shows the whereabouts of people included in the group information 412. In one embodiment, the automatic group generator 404 may use the user location information 414 to include or filter one or more people based on whereabouts. For example, the automatic group generator 404 may include people from a pool of eligible persons determined to be in a predetermined geographic area (eg, within a predetermined room, building, park, city, or other area). Instructed by the coordinator for the group to include people from a pool of eligible persons determined to be within a predetermined radial distance from the location indicated by the coordinator for the group (eg, the location of the computing device 102a) Include people from a pool of eligible persons determined to be within a given travel time from a location (eg, as determined based on traffic conditions, time of day, etc.) or other location-based Groups may be created to include people based on restrictions.

  User location information 414 may indicate a user location determined in any manner. The method is based on positioning technology, such as by the IP (Internet protocol) address of the user's computing device (eg, fixed equipment), GPS (Global Positioning System), cell tower triangulation, or Bluetooth (R) proximity , By location information manually provided by the user (eg, by message) and / or by other techniques.

  Thus, by manual or automatic techniques, the group determiner 302 may generate the determined group display 312 to determine the people included in the group. In one embodiment, a user (eg, a group coordinator) interacts with a list of people included in the group using the displayed user interface 408, and the group is generated either manually or automatically. You can manually change the group of people regardless of what has been done.

  Referring back to FIG. 2, in step 204, a combined interest set representing a group of people is generated. As shown in FIG. 3, the interest set generator 306 of the meeting system 300 may receive the determined group display 312. The interest set generator 306 may be configured to obtain profile information 122 for the people in the group indicated by the determined group display 312 and generate a combined interest set 316 for the group. The combined interest set 316 is configured as an intersection of the interests of the people in the group and thus represents a combined set of interests for the group.

  Interest set generator 306 may be configured to generate combined interest set 316 in various ways. For example, FIG. 5 shows a flowchart 500 that provides a process for determining one combined interest set for a group, according to one embodiment. Interest set generator 306 may operate in accordance with flowchart 500 in one embodiment. For illustrative purposes, the flowchart 500 of FIG. 5 is described with respect to FIG. FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of the communication system 100 of FIG. 1 in which the interest set generator 306 (in the first server 104) determines one combined interest set for a group, according to one embodiment. . As shown in FIG. 6, the interest set generator 306 includes a profile information searcher 602 and a profile common part determiner 604. Flowchart 500 and interest set generator 306 of FIG. 6 are described below. Further structural and operational embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on the description that follows.

  Flowchart 500 begins at step 502. In step 502, profile information for a group of people is obtained. As shown in FIG. 6, the profile information searcher 602 of the interest set generator 306 receives the determined group indication 312. In one embodiment, profile information searcher 602 attempts to obtain profile information for each person included in the group indicated by the determined group display 312. In some cases, the profile information searcher 602 can obtain profile information for each person, and in other cases, the profile information searcher 602 is less than all people in the group. Profile information can be obtained (e.g., for user settings that allow opt-out of providing access to profile information because such profile information cannot be located or accessed). In all cases, as shown in FIG. 6, the profile information searcher 602 outputs the acquired profile information as the acquired profile information 612.

  Profile information searcher 602 may obtain profile information from one or more sources. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, profile information searcher 602 may be communicatively connected to one or more of social network 606, search engine 608, and message server 610 through network 110. The profile information searcher 602 may send a profile information request 126a to the social network 606 over the network 110 to obtain social network profile information 128a for one or more people. Profile information searcher 602 may send a profile information request 126b to search engine 608 over network 110 to obtain search engine profile information 128b for one or more people. Profile information searcher 602 may send a profile information request 126c to message server 610 over network 110 to obtain message server profile information 128c for one or more people. In further embodiments, profile information searcher 602 may communicate with additional and / or alternative entities to obtain profile information for a group of people. For example, in one embodiment, the profile information searcher 602 may provide a profile for the user from the user's computing device (eg, from stored profile information, from cookies stored on the computing device, etc.). Information may be obtained.

  Each of social network profile information 128a, search engine profile information 128b, message server profile information 128c, and profile information received from other sources may include any type of information for a person. Preference information (eg favorite restaurant type, food preferences, favorite dishes, drink preferences, favorite places, food requests due to allergies, need for accessibility due to physical handicap, etc.), Interest information (eg hobbies, travel destinations, favorite sports, other predetermined interests, etc.), demographic information (eg age, gender, address, marital status, socio-economic status, presence of children) , Etc.) and other suitable profile information types.

Some examples of social networks 606 provided for illustrative purposes are: Facebook +, operated by Google, such as Facebook, operated by Facebook, Inc., Palalto, California; Google+, operated by Google, Inc., Mountain View, California; Includes Mountained LinkedIn, LinkedIn® operated by Twitter, San Francisco, California, and Foursquare provided by Foursquare Labs, New York City, New York. Social groups (eg, friends, family, and / or other groups) enabled by online services such as Windows Live ^™ provided by Microsoft Corporation, and Microsoft Windows® Rphone, etc. Also included are social groups (eg, friends, family, and / or other groups) that are possible on the computing device. An example of a search engine 608 is the Yahoo! Yahoo offered by the company! Including Search ^™ (http://www.yahoo.com), Microsoft® Bing ^™ (http://www.bing.com), and Google ^™ (http://www.google.com). Yes. Examples of message server 610 include email servers (outlook.com provided by Microsoft Corporation, gmail.com provided by Google, Yahoo.com provided by Yahoo!), a text message server, Includes chat server, etc.

  In one embodiment, profile information searcher 602 may be configured to analyze received message threads for profile information. This is for inclusion in the acquired profile information 612. For example, FIG. 7 shows a block diagram of the profile information searcher 602 according to one embodiment. As shown in FIG. 7, the profile information searcher 602 includes a message thread analyzer 702. Message thread analyzer 702 is configured to analyze at least one message thread of the group for at least one of interest information, time information, meeting location suggestions, and / or further related information. Message thread analyzer 702 may be configured to analyze any number and any type of message thread. e-mail, text message thread, chat room discussion, social network discussion, etc. For example, the message thread analyzer 702 analyzes message threads for people's names, and people with respect to preferences, interests, etc. (eg, likes and dislikes for a particular food, restaurant, store, workplace, destination, etc.) May be configured to parse any corresponding comments made by. Message thread analyzer 702 may include this determined information in the obtained profile information 612 for the corresponding people.

  Referring back to FIG. 5, in step 504 of flowchart 500, the intersection of the acquired profile information is determined to generate a combined interest set. As shown in FIG. 6, the profile intersection determiner 604 of the interest set generator 306 receives the acquired profile information 612. In one embodiment, the profile intersection determiner 604 is configured to analyze the acquired profile information 612 to determine an overlap in the group people's profile information. It is like determining a combined interest set 316, indicating a combined set of interests for the group.

  For example, the profile common part determiner 604 analyzes the acquired profile information 612 to identify interest keywords (eg, keywords related to interest information, preference information, demographic information, etc.). It's okay. Keywords occur more frequently than others in different people's profile information. These identified keywords may be used to define an interest set for the group. Interest keywords that occur more frequently may be given a higher weight or a higher likelihood of being included in an interest set, while interest keywords that do not occur more often are lower Weighting or a lower possibility of being included in the interest set may be given. Some interesting keywords related to the request, such as food allergies, child presence, and / or physical handicap, even if their relative incidence of occurrence in the acquired profile information 612 is low, A higher weighting or a higher likelihood of being included in the interest set may be given.

  As such, the profile intersection determiner 604 may generate a combined interest set 316. Includes a comprehensive list of weighted interest keywords or other search parameters for the group, including only interest keywords or search parameters for the group with the largest weight (eg, greater than a pre-defined weighting threshold), and / or Alternatively, it may contain combined interest information for the group in another way.

  Further, in one embodiment, the profile intersection determiner 604 may allow the contents of the combined interest set 316 to be manually adjusted. For example, FIG. 8 shows a block diagram of a portion of the communication system 100 of FIG. 1, where the profile common part determiner 604 (in the first server 104) adjusts the group set preference according to one embodiment. It can be so. As shown in FIG. 4, the profile intersection determiner 604 includes a preference adjuster 802. The preference adjuster 802 is configured to generate a user interface 806 to allow one person (eg, a coordinator for a group) to manually adjust at least one preference for a group of people.

  As shown in FIG. 8, preference adjuster 802 may generate user interface definition 804. The user interface definition is transmitted in a communication signal from the first server 104 through the network 110 to the computing device 102a. User interface definition 804 may be in any suitable form described or otherwise known elsewhere herein. User interface definition 804 defines a user interface that allows a user to manually adjust preferences for a group.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 8, an application 112 at the computing device 102a may generate a user interface 806 based on the user interface definition 804. For example, the application 112 may include a web browser that displays the user interface 806 based on the web document version of the user interface definition 804. Alternatively, user interface 806 may be generated in other ways based on user interface definition 804. User interface 806 may include any number of user interfaces and combinations. This is so that preferences can be adjusted. Such as adding new preferences, deleting preferences, and changing existing preferences. A user (eg, a group coordinator) residing on computing device 102a may be able to adjust preferences in various ways by interacting with user interface 806. Enter preference values in the text box, select preference values from the contact list, check buttons to select or deselect preferences, and / or otherwise It is something like that.

  In this way, the preference information in the combined interest set 316 can be changed (eg, favorite restaurant, food, drink type, store, workplace, travel destination, etc.). As shown in FIG. 8, the application 112 may generate a modified preference list 808. The list is configured using the user interface 806 and shows the changed preferences. The changed preference list 808 is transmitted from the computing device 102a over the network 110 to the preference adjuster 802 in the first server 104. The preference adjuster 802 may change the preferences included in the combined interest set 316 based on the changed preference list 808.

  Referring back to FIG. 2, at step 206, the location of one or more people in the group is determined. As shown in FIG. 3, location determiner 304 may receive the determined group indication 312. The whereabouts determiner 304 may be configured to determine the whereabouts of one or more people in the group defined by the determined group display 312. Further, the whereabouts determiner 304 may be configured to analyze the determined whereabouts to generate a general geographic center position for the group. As shown in FIG. 3, the location determination unit 304 outputs the determined geographical center position as the geographical center position 318.

  In some instances, whereabouts determiner 304 may determine whereabouts for each person. And in other cases, the whereabouts determiner 304 may determine whereabouts for fewer than all people in the group (eg, because such location information cannot be determined or accessed, For user privacy settings that allow you to opt out of providing, etc.). In any case, the location determiner 304 is configured to determine the location of one or more people in the group in various ways. For example, in one embodiment, location determiner 304 may receive identifier signal 324. The identifier signal includes an identifier, such as an IP (Internet protocol) address or other identifier of the user's computing device (eg, a fixed device). The identifier of the identifier signal 324 may correspond to a geographic location with respect to the computing device, and thereby may correspond to a user's geographic location. In another example, location determiner 304 may receive position indication signal 326 from a user computing device. The location indication signal indicates the location of the computing device, thereby indicating the geographic location of the user. The computing device may determine the position indicated in the position indication signal 326 in any manner. By positioning technology, such as GPS, cell tower triangulation, WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) positioning technology, by manually entering location information into a computing device, and / or other technologies Including The location may be formatted in any way. It includes address formats (for example, street addresses, city names, postal codes, etc.), geographic coordinate formats (for example, latitude and longitude), and the like.

  Whereabouts determiner 304 may be configured in any manner to generate a general geographic center location for the group based on a plurality of determined locations of people in the group. For example, the location determiner 304 uses (cartesian (x, y, z) coordinates as the “geographic center” or “center of gravity” and the earth is fully You may perform a geographic midpoint calculation that calculates the geographic midpoint (assuming it is spherical), by calculating the center of the shortest distance (using the spherical cosine theorem, if the earth is perfectly spherical) (Assuming that) the geographical center position may be calculated, and the geographical center position may be calculated by calculating the average latitude / longitude (assuming the earth is flat and the shorter distance between the positions (eg , 250 miles or less), or the geographical center location may be calculated in another way. As is known to those skilled in the art. In each case, each location determined for one person may be weighted according to the type and number of roads and intersections, traffic conditions, speed limits, etc. This is to take into account the difference in travel time based on these situations.

  Referring back to FIG. 2, in step 208, a local search result is received for a group of people, generated based on a plurality of locations determined as a combined interest set. As shown in FIG. 3, the local search service interface 308 may receive a combined interest set 316 and a geographic center location 318. As described above, the combined interest set 316 shows a combined set of interests for a group of people, and the geographic center location 318 is a general geographic center location for the group. The local search service interface 308 is configured to communicate with a local search service, such as the local search service 120 at the second server 108 of FIG. This is because local search results for the group are obtained based on the combined interest set 316 and the geographical center position 318.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the local search service interface 308 may send a local search request 126 to the local search service. The local search request 126 includes a combined interest set 316 (“what” is being searched) and a determined center location (“where”) for the group indicated by the geographic center location 318. ) ”Information) may be included. The local search service may process the information of the local search request 126 to select one or more possible gathering locations for the group. By methods that would be known to those skilled in the art (eg, by querying the inverted index, etc.). For example, the local search service may determine a list of possible meeting places (eg, restaurants, taverns, pubs, office buildings, etc.). The list is one that has very appropriate properties regarding the information contained in the combined interest set 316. The determined possible gathering locations may be weighted by a local search service. Based on how closely matched the information contained in the combined interest set 316 (closer matches are more highly weighted) and relative to the center position for the group indicated by the geographic center position 318 It is based on how close you are (closer distances are weighted higher).

Note that the local search service (eg, local search service 120 of FIG. 1) may be a dedicated or commercially available local search service. Examples of network-accessible local search services include Bing ^™ Maps provided by Microsoft Corporation, Google Maps ^™ provided by Google, and Yahoo! Yahoo offered by the company! (R) Local is included.

  The local search service may provide one or more possible gathering locations in the local search response 128 and is received by the local search service interface 308. As shown in FIG. 3, the local search service interface 308 may output a local search result 322, including possible gathering locations indicated in the local search response 128.

  Referring back to FIG. 2, at step 210, local search results can be displayed to at least one of a group of people. As shown in FIG. 3, output interface 310 may receive local search results 322. The output interface 310 is configured to send the local search results 322 as one or more of the computing devices 102a-102n (FIG. 1) as the local search results 130. The local search results 130 may be received by the computing device and are displayed or otherwise shown to the relevant user.

  For example, FIG. 9 shows a block diagram of a portion of the communication system of FIG. 1, allowing the output interface 308 to display local search results and associated statistics, according to one embodiment. As shown in FIG. 9, the output interface 308 generates a user interface 806 to allow a person (eg, a coordinator or other person for the group) to review possible gathering locations for the local search results 130. Is configured to do.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the output interface 308 may generate a user interface definition 904 based on the local search results 322. The definition is transmitted in a communication signal from the first server 104 over the network 110 to the computing device 102a. The user interface definition 904 may have any suitable format described elsewhere herein, or any other known format. User interface definition 904 defines a user interface that allows a user to review (eg, view and / or listen to) one or more possible gathering locations for local search results 130.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 9, an application 112 on the computing device 102a may generate a user interface 906 based on the user interface definition 904. Application 112 may include a web browser that displays user interface 906 based on a web document version of user interface definition 904. Alternatively, the user interface 906 may be generated in other ways based on the user interface definition 904. User interface 906 may include any number of user interface elements and combinations thereof so that the gathering location for local search results 130 is displayed. For example, the user interface 906 displays one or more meeting places, plays a voice reading the one or more meeting places, or otherwise, one or more meeting places. May provide. A user (eg, a group coordinator) residing on computing device 102a may be allowed to interact with user interface 906 to select one of the gathering locations to be used by the group. Alternatively, all users in the group may be displayed with a user interface 906 on their computing device. It is possible for the user to interact with the user interface 906 to vote and thereby select one of the meeting places to be used by the group (e.g., according to the displayed voting results, etc.) .

  Further, in one embodiment, a statistics generator 902 may be present in the first server 104 as shown in FIG. A statistics generator 902 may be present in the meeting system to enable statistics and / or display regarding the combined interest set 316 to be generated. For example, in one embodiment, the statistics generator 902 calculates the frequency (eg, number of occurrences) of each keyword in the combined interest set 316, calculates the percentage of people in the group to which each keyword is associated, and / or Other statistics regarding the combined interest set 316 may be calculated.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the statistics generator 902 may output a statistics value 908. Includes statistics calculated based on the combined interest set 316. The statistics 908 may be sent over the network 110 to the computing device 102a by the output interface 308, as displayed in the user interface 906.

  In one embodiment, if present, statistics generator 902 may be a separate element of the meeting system. In another example, the statistics generator 902 may be included in another element of the meeting system. Included in the interest set generator 306 (of FIG. 3).

B. Examples of Meeting Location Determination The meeting location for a group may be determined in various ways according to the embodiments described herein. Several examples are described below with respect to FIGS. 10-15, 16A and 16B. This is to explain the operation of the flowchart 200 (FIG. 2) and the meeting systems 118 and 300 (FIGS. 1 and 3). These examples are provided for illustrative purposes and are not intended to be limiting. Those skilled in the art will appreciate many variations to the embodiments of FIGS. 10-15, 16A and 16B based on the teachings herein. Such variations are also within the scope of this patent application.

  In particular, FIGS. 10-15, 16A and 16B show block diagrams of a user interface that allows one set location to be determined for one group, according to an embodiment. The user interfaces of FIGS. 10-15, 16A and 16B are shown as having dimensions suitable for a smartphone display screen. However, other embodiments may have other forms and / or dimensions suitable for display screens of other types of devices described elsewhere herein or other known devices (eg, desktops). Computers, laptops, tablets, glasses with lenses that function as display screens, watches with display screens, etc.). In addition, alternative types, combinations, and sequences of user interfaces other than those shown in FIGS. 10-15, 16A, and 16B may be displayed and used to allow the location of the group to be determined. . It will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the teachings herein.

  In the example of FIGS. 10-15, 16A, and 16B, the first person (“Anna Jones”) has a display screen that displays the user interface of FIGS. 10-15, 16A, and 16B. Interact with computing devices. This first person may be considered the group coordinator for the group. In FIG. 10, the first person is a second person (“Emily Smith”) and a message thread 1004 (eg, by text message) displayed in the user interface 1002. Communicating. In message thread 1004, the location of the second person ("Drake Hotel") is shown. User interface elements (eg, virtual buttons) are displayed in the user interface 1002. The text “Meet Up” is displayed and may interact to initiate the determination of the meeting location for the group.

  In this example, the first person decides to interact (eg, by touch) with the user interface element 1006 to initiate a function to determine the meeting location for the group. In one embodiment, in response to interaction with user interface element 1006, user interface 1102 shown in FIG. 11 is displayed on the display screen. For example, the user interface 1102 may be generated by the group determiner 302 (eg, as shown in FIG. 4). The user interface 1102 displays a “collection” home screen. A first user interface element 1108 (eg, a virtual button) displaying a list of group members 1106 (eg, determined in accordance with step 202 of FIG. 2), the text “Set Filters”, and , A second user interface element 1110 (eg, a virtual button) displaying the text “Launch”. In this example, list 1106 includes “Anna” and “Emily”. Based on the analysis of the message thread 1004, it is automatically determined by the automatic group generator 404 of FIG. In this regard, the first user may interact with the first user interface element 1108 to set a filter with respect to the meeting place determination, or the second user interface element to generate a possible meeting place. It may interact with 1110.

  For example, the user interface 1202 shown in FIG. 12 is displayed when the user decides to activate the meeting location determination by interacting with the second user interface element 1110 in FIG. The user interface 1202 displays a ranked list 1204 of possible meeting places. The ranked list 1204 may be determined as described above (eg, with respect to steps 204, 206, and 208 of FIG. 2) and the output interface as described above (eg, with respect to step 210 of FIG. 2). It may be displayed in user interface 1202 by 308 (eg, as shown in FIG. 9). In the example of FIG. 12, three possible meeting places are displayed as a ranked list 1204 (ranks 1-3 are shown). However, alternatively, other quantities of locations may be displayed. Any information describing each possible gathering location may be displayed. It includes the name of the place, the distance from the center of the group, the ranking, the address, and / or other suitable descriptive information.

  In another embodiment, when the user interacts with user interface element 1006 in FIG. 10, user interface 1202 may be directly generated and displayed to the user (user interface 1102 in FIG. 11). (Without first displaying). In this way, each of flowchart steps 210, 204, 206, 208, and 210 may be performed in response to one user interface interaction (eg, a “one click” set). Location selection).

  The user interface 1302 shown in FIG. 13 is displayed when the user chooses to set a filter with respect to the meeting location determination by interacting with the first user interface element 1108 in FIG. The user interface 1302 displays a filter set 1304 that can be used to adjust preferences, change group members, and / or adjust other parameters. The filter set 1304 may be generated by the preference adjuster 802 shown in FIG. In the example of FIG. 3, the filter set 1304 includes first to third user interface elements 1306, 1308, and 1310, a first user interface element set 1312, and a second user interface element set 1314. The first user interface element 1306 is a text entry box that lists current people in the group. The second user interface element 1308 is a virtual button that can be interacted to allow group members to be changed. The third user interface element 1310 is a pull-down menu that allows various selections to be made to sort the search results (eg, sort possible gathering locations by distance, countdown, etc.). The first user interface element set 1312 is a set of check boxes that allow various categories of possible gathering locations to be displayed or not displayed (e.g., locations that are open, locations that provide deals, etc). The second user interface element set 1314 is a set of check boxes (e.g., African cuisine, American cuisine, etc.) that allow various dishes to be displayed or hidden (removed through a filter). Each of the sets 1312 and 1314 may include a selection of any quantity that has a corresponding check box.

  The user interface 1402 shown in FIG. 14 may be displayed when the user chooses to change the members of the group by interacting with the second user interface element 1308 in FIG. For example, the user interface 1402 may display a contact list maintained by the first user's computing device. The user interface 1402 may be interacted to guide the user through the contact list to find one or more additional people to add to the group. The user interface 1402 displays user interface elements 1406 (eg, virtual buttons) that can be interacted with when people have been added to the group.

  The user interface 1502 shown in FIG. 15 is displayed after the first user interacts with the user interface 1402 of FIG. 14 to add a new group member (“Miles White”). May be. The user interface 1502 is identical to the user interface 1102 of FIG. 11 except that the list of group members 1106 in FIG. 15 includes three (“Anna”, “Emily”, and “Miles”) instead of two. belongs to. Note that the user interface elements next to each of the people displayed in list 1106 can be interacted to remove the corresponding person from the group.

  The user interface 1602 shown in FIG. 16A is displayed when the user chooses to initiate the meeting location determination by interacting with the second user interface element 1110 in FIG. The user interface 1602 is generally similar to the user interface 1202 shown in FIG. 12 and displays a ranked list 1604 of possible meeting places. The ranked list 1604 has been defined as described above (eg, with respect to steps 204, 206, and 208 shown in FIG. 2), and as described above (eg, as shown in FIG. 2). Displayed on the user interface 1602 by the output interface 308 (eg, as shown in FIG. 9). In the example of FIG. 16A, three possible collection locations are displayed as a ranked list 1604 (with ranks 1-3 shown), but alternatively, other quantities of locations are displayed. Good. The set of possible gathering places displayed as the ranked list 1604 is based on the third person added to the group (“Miles”), and the possible set displayed as the list 1204 ranked in FIG. Different from the set of meeting places. This is probably because the third person's profile information was included (in addition to the first two person's profile information) in the analysis performed by the interest set generator 306 of FIG. Is being generated. For example, a third person may be unacceptable for gluten and may be indicated in the third person's profile information, which is gluten-free in the ranked list 1204. The restaurant was led to be ranked high.

  FIG. 16B shows an alternative version of the user interface 1602. In FIG. 16B, the user interface 1602 displays a ranked list 1604 of possible meeting places, and further displays a statistical value 1606. The statistics 1606 may be generated by the statistics generator 902 of FIG. 9 and may indicate various statistics for the group. For example, in FIG. 16B, the statistic 1606 shows the percentage of group members and has a preference for vegetables (66%), wine (33%), and fine restaurants (100%) at the desired meeting location. doing.

C. Application Examples Application 112, mobile application 124, and web application 116 run on computing devices 102a, 102b, and 102n of FIG. 1, but each include a number of corresponding applications. For example, the application 112 may be an office suite application, a desktop application, a mobile application, a web application, or any other type of application that may be executed on the computing device 102a. Office suite applications include various types of productivity enhancement applications. Message applications, word processing applications, spreadsheet applications, presentation applications, etc. Desktop applications include various types of applications configured to run on a computer desktop (eg, a desktop computer). Some office suite applications, desktop widgets or gadgets (interactive tools that typically provide one purpose service, such as news streaming, current weather offers, current stock quotes, etc.) Etc.

The mobile app 124 is an application configured to be executed on a mobile device and may be downloaded to the computing device 102b through an application distribution platform or otherwise obtained. Examples of application delivery platforms for mobile apps are Apple (R) App Store provided by Apple, Inc., Cupertino, California, Google (R) Play ^™ provided by Google, Microsoft provided by Microsoft, Inc. (R) Windows (R) Phone Store, Microsoft (R) Store Online, and BlackBerry (R) AppWorld ( ^TM ) provided by Researchvh in Motion, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.

  The web application 116 may be an application that can be accessed across a network (eg, the network 110) and / or a browser-supported programming language (eg, Javascript®, HTML (hypertext markup language) browser). It may be executed to display an application encoded in a browser-rendered mark update language and executable in a web browser. Examples of suitable web browsers are Internet Explorer® developed by Microsoft, Mozilla Firefox® developed by Mozilla in Mountain View, Calif., Safari developed by Apple, and , Google (R) Chrome. Examples of applications that may be executed in a browser and / or mobile app interface include social network applications, search engines, navigation assistance applications (map applications, restaurant location applications, traffic applications, etc.), game applications, asset management applications, etc. Contains.

D. Example computing device and server environment Application 112, mobile app 124, web application 116, meeting system 118, local search service 120, meeting system 300, group determiner 302, location determiner 304, interest set generator 306, local Search service interface 308, output interface 310, manual input enabler 402, automatic group generator 404, profile information searcher 602, profile common part determiner 604, social network 606, search engine 608, message server 610, message thread analyzer 702 , Preference adjuster 802, statistics generator 902, flowchart 200, and flowchart 5. 00 may be implemented in hardware or hardware combined with software and / or firmware. For example, application 112, mobile application 124, web application 116, meeting system 118, local search service 120, meeting system 300, group determiner 302, whereabouts determiner 304, interest set generator 306, local search service interface 308, output interface 310, manual input enabler 402, automatic group generator 404, profile information searcher 602, profile common part determiner 604, social network 606, search engine 608, message server 610, message thread analyzer 702, preference adjuster 802, The statistics generator 902, the flowchart 200, and / or the flowchart 500 may include one or more processors. And implemented as a computer program / instruction configured to be stored in a computer readable recording medium. Alternatively, application 112, mobile application 124, web application 116, meeting system 118, local search service 120, meeting system 300, group determiner 302, whereabouts determiner 304, interest set generator 306, local search service interface 308, Output interface 310, manual input enabler 402, automatic group generator 404, profile information searcher 602, profile common part determiner 604, social network 606, search engine 608, message server 610, message thread analyzer 702, preference adjuster 802, statistics generator 902, flowchart 200, and / or flowchart 500 are hardware logic / electronic circuits It may be implemented as a road.

  For example, in one embodiment, meeting system 118, local search service 120, meeting system 300, group determiner 302, whereabouts determiner 304, interest set generator 306, local search service interface 308, output interface 310, manual input enabler. 402, automatic group generator 404, profile information searcher 602, profile common part determiner 604, message thread analyzer 702, preference adjuster 802, statistics generator 902, flowchart 200, and / or flowchart 500. One or more may be implemented together in a system on chip (SoC). A SoC performs one or more processors (eg, a microcontroller, microprocessor, digital signal processor, (DSP), etc.), memory, one or more communication interfaces, and / or to perform functions. Integrated circuits including additional circuitry and / or embedded firmware.

  FIG. 17 illustrates an exemplary implementation of a computing device 1700 upon which an embodiment of the invention may be implemented. For example, computing devices 102a-102n, first server 104, and / or server 108 may be implemented on one or more similar computing devices of computing device 1700, one of computing devices 1700. It includes more functions and / or alternative functions. The description of computing device 1700 provided herein is provided for purposes of illustration and is not intended to be limiting. Embodiments of the present invention may be implemented in additional types of computer systems, as will be known to those skilled in the art.

  As shown in FIG. 17, the computing device 1700 includes one or more processors 1702, a system memory 1704, and 1706 that connects various system components including the system memory 1704 to the processor 1702. It is out. Bus 1706 represents one or more of several types of any bus structure. It includes a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, an accelerated graphics port, and a processor or local bus that uses any type of bus structure. The system memory 1704 includes read only memory (ROM) 1708 and random access memory (RAM) 1710. A basic input / output system 1712 (BIOS) is stored in the ROM 1708.

  The computing device 1700 also has one or more of the following drives. Hard disk drive 1714 for reading and writing from hard disk, magnetic disk drive 1716 for reading or writing from removable magnetic disk 1718, and removable optical disks such as CD ROM, DVD ROM, or other optical media 1722 for reading or writing from 1722; The hard disk drive 1714, magnetic disk drive 1716, and optical disk drive 1720 are each connected to the bus 1706 by a hard disk drive interface 1724, a magnetic disk drive interface 1726, and an optical disk drive interface 1728. The drive and associated computer readable media provide non-volatile storage for computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, and other data for the computer. Although hard disks, removable magnetic disks, and removable optical disks have been described, other types of computer readable media can also be used to store data. Flash memory cards, digital video disks, random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), and so on.

  Many program modules may be stored on a hard disk, magnetic disk, optical disk, ROM, or RAM. These programs include an operating system 1730, more application programs 1732, other program modules 1734, and program data 1736. Application program 1732 or program module 1734 may include, for example, computer program logic (eg, computer program code or instructions). Application 112, mobile application 124, web application 116, meeting system 118, local search service 120, meeting system 300, group determiner 302, location determiner 304, interest set generator 306, local search service interface 308, output interface 310, Manual input enabler 402, automatic group generator 404, profile information searcher 602, profile common part determiner 604, message thread analyzer 702, preference adjuster 802, statistics generator 902, flowchart 200, and / or flowchart 500 ( Including any steps of flowcharts 200 and 500), and / or further embodiments described herein. It is used to implement.

  A user may enter commands and information into the computing device 1700 through input devices such as a keyboard 1738 and a pointing device 1740. Other input devices (not shown) are: microphone, joystick, gamepad, satellite dish, scanner, touch screen and / or touchpad, voice recognition system for receiving voice input, gesture recognition for receiving gesture input May include systems, etc. These and other input devices are often connected to the processor 1702 through a serial port interface 1742 connected to the bus 1706, but may be connected by other interfaces. A parallel port, a game port, or a universal serial bus (USB).

  Display screen 1744 is also connected to bus 1706 via an interface, such as video adapter 1746. Display screen 1774 may be external to computing device 1700 or may be incorporated. In addition to the display screen 1744, the computing device 1700 may include other peripheral output devices (not shown) such as speakers and printers.

  Computing device 1700 is connected to a network 1748 (eg, the Internet) through an adapter or network interface 1750, a modem 1752, or other means for establishing communications across the network. The modem 1752 may be internal or external, but may be connected to the bus 1706 via the serial port interface 1742, as shown in FIG. 17, or use other interface types, including a parallel port. May be connected to the bus 1706.

  As used herein, the terms “computer program medium”, “computer-readable medium” and “computer-readable recording medium”. -Readable storage medium ")" is generally used to refer to a medium such as a hard disk associated with the hard disk drive 1714, a removable magnetic disk 1718, and a removable optical disk 1722. The same applies to other media such as flash memory cards, digital video disks, random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), and the like. Such computer readable medium recording media are distinct from communication media and do not overlap (does not include communication media). Communication media typically embodies computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal such as a carrier wave. The term “modulated data signal” means a signal that has one or more of a set of characteristics of the signal, or a signal that has been modified in a way to encode information in the signal. is there. By way of example, and not limitation, communication media includes wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared, and other wireless media. Embodiments are also directed to such communication media.

  As described above, computer programs and modules (including application programs 1732 and other program modules 1734) may be stored on a hard disk, magnetic disk, optical disk, ROM, or RAM. The computer program may also be received via a network interface 1750, a serial interface 1742, or any other interface type. Such computer programs, when executed or loaded by an application, allow the computing device 1700 to perform the functions according to the embodiments of the invention described herein. Accordingly, such a computer program represents the controller of computing device 1700.

  The present invention is also directed to a computer program product that includes software stored on any computer usable medium. Such software, when executed on one or more data processing devices, causes the data processing devices to operate as described herein. Embodiments of the present invention use any computer usable or computer readable medium as is known now or in the future. Examples of computer readable media include, but are not limited to, RAM, hard drive, floppy disk, CD ROM, DVD OM, zip drive, tape, magnetic recording device, optical recording Devices, MEMs, nanotechnology-based recording devices, etc.

VI. CONCLUSION While various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only and not limitation. Those skilled in the art will recognize that various changes can be made in form and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Accordingly, the breadth and scope of the present invention should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments, but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims and equivalents.

Claims (10)

A method for determining a meeting place,
Determining the group of people to gather,
Generating a combined interest set representative of the group of people;
Determining the location of people in the group to determine a plurality of locations;
Receiving a local search result for the group of people generated based on the combined interest set and the determined plurality of locations, the local search result including at least one possible gathering location , Steps and
Allowing the local search results to be displayed to at least one of the group of people;
Including a method. The step of determining a group of people comprises
Allowing said group of people to be defined manually,
The method of claim 1. The step of determining a group of people comprises
Automatically generating the group of people,
The method of claim 1. The step of automatically generating the group of people comprises
Analyzing a message thread, including determining who were joined together in the message thread for inclusion in the group;
The method of claim 3. Generating the combined interest set representative of the group of people comprises:
Obtaining profile information of the group of people;
Determining the intersection of the obtained profile information to generate the combined interest set;
The method of claim 1 comprising: A system for determining a meeting place,
A group determiner configured to determine a group of people to gather;
An interest set generator configured to generate a combined interest set representative of the group of people;
A location determiner configured to determine a location of a person in the group to determine a plurality of locations;
A local search service interface configured to receive a local search result for the group of people generated based on the combined interest set and the determined plurality of locations, wherein the local search result is at least one A local search service interface containing two possible gathering locations;
An output interface configured to allow the local search results to be displayed to at least one of the group of people;
Including the system. The group determiner is
Configured to generate a user interface that allows the group of people to be manually defined;
The system according to claim 6. The group determiner is
Configured to automatically generate the group of people,
The system according to claim 7. The interest set generator is
A profile information searcher configured to obtain profile information of the group of people;
A profile common part determiner configured to determine a common part of the acquired profile information to generate the combined interest set;
The system of claim 6 comprising: A computer program recorded on a computer readable medium,
A computer program that, when executed, enables a processor to perform the method of any one of claims 1-5.

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